Principles of Morals and

Principles of Morals and Legislation/159
classes, it may also sometimes be convenient to style them private of-
fences. To contrast them at the same time with offences of the 3rd class,
they may be styled private extra-regarding offences.
VII. When it appears, in general, that there are persons to whom the
act in question may be detrimental, but such persons cannot be indi-
vidually assigned, the circle within which it appears that they may be
found, is either of less extent than that which comprises the whole com-
munity, or not. If of less, the persons comprised within this lesser circle
may be considered for this purpose as composing a body of themselves;
comprised within, but distinguishable from, the greater body of the whole
community. The circumstance that constitutes the union between the
members of this lesser body, may be either their residence within a par-
ticular place, or, in short, any other less explicit principle of union,
which may serve to distinguish them from the remaining members of the
community. In the first case, the act may be styled an offence against a
neighbourhood: in the second, an offence against a particular class of
persons in the community. Offenses, then, against a class or
neighbourhood, may, together, constitute the 2nd class of offences. To
contrast them with private offences on the one hand, and public on the
other, they may also be styled semi-public offences.
VIII. Offences, which in the first instance are detrimental to the
offender himself, and to no one else, unless it be by their being detrimen-
tal to himself, may serve to compose a third class. To contrast them the
better with offences of the first, second, and fourth classes, all which are
of a transitive nature, they might be styled intransitive offences; but
still better, self-regarding.
IX. The fourth class may be composed of such acts as ought to be
made offences, on account of the distant mischief which they threaten to
bring upon an unassignable indefinite multitude of the whole number of
individuals, of which the community is composed: although no particu-
lar individual should appear more likely to be a sufferer by them than
another. These may be called public offences, or offences against the
state.
X. A fifth class, or appendix, may be composed of such acts as,
according to the circumstances in which they are committed, or and
more particularly according to the purposes to which they are applied,
may be detrimental in any one of the ways in which the act of one man
can be detrimental to another. These may to be termed multiform, or
heterogeneous offences. Offences that are in this case may be reduced

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160/Jeremy Bentham
to two great heads: 1. Offences by falsehood: and 2. Offenses against
trust.
§2. 
Divisions and sub-divisions
XI. Let us see by what method these classes may be farther subdivided.
First, then, with regard to offences against individuals.
In the present period of existence, a man’s being and wellbeing, his
happiness and his security; in a word, his pleasures and his immunity
from pains, are all dependent, more or less, in the first place, upon his
own person; in the next place, upon the exterior objects that surround
him. These objects are either things, or other persons. Under one or
other of these classes must evidently be comprised every sort of exterior
object, by means of which his interest can be affected. If then, by means
of any offence, a man should on any occasion become a sufferer, it must
be in one or other of two ways: 1. absolutely, to wit, immediately in his
own person; in which case the offence may be said to be an offence
against his person: or, 2. relatively, by reason of some material relation
which the before mentioned exterior objects may happen to bear, in the
way of causality to his happiness. Now in as far as a man is in a way to
derive either happiness or security from any object which belongs to the
class of things, such thing is said to be his property, or at least he is said
to have a property or an interest therein: an offence, therefore, which
tends to lessen the facility he might otherwise have of deriving happi-
ness or security from an object which belongs to the class of things may
be styled an offence against his property. With regard to persons, in as
far as, from objects of this class, a man is in a way to derive happiness
or security, it is in virtue of their services: in virtue of some services,
which, by one sort of inducement or another, they may be disposed to
render him. Now, then, take any man, by way of example, and the dis-
position, whatever it may be, which he may be in to render you service,
either has no other connection to give birth or support to it, than the
general one which binds him to the whole species, or it has some other
connection more particular. In the latter case, such a connection may be
spoken of as constituting, in your favour, a kind of fictitious or incorpo-
real object of property, which is styled your condition. An offence, there-
fore, the tendency of which is to lessen the facility you might otherwise
have of deriving happiness from the services of a person thus specially
connected with you, may be styled an offence against your condition in
life, or simply against your condition. Conditions in life must evidently

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